


Hypoallergenic Artificial Peppermint Flavor

by Lilbug121



Series: A Series of Relatively Fortunate Events [4]
Category: Series of Unfortunate Events - Lemony Snicket
Genre: Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-24
Updated: 2014-01-24
Packaged: 2018-01-09 19:56:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 876
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1150144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lilbug121/pseuds/Lilbug121
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sunny's cooking skills are just the addition needed to Violet's inventing, Klaus's research, and Beatrice's lack of allergy in order to invent peppermint flavoring that does not set off the Baudelaire allergy. But how can the young chef be asked to help, when it's meant to be her birthday present!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Hypoallergenic Artificial Peppermint Flavor

**Author's Note:**

> When I posted this initially "graphic depictions of violence" was selected as an archive warning, because its right next to "no warnings apply" and I don't pay enough attention to things

"I...I'm not sure _what_ that one tasted like. Sort of...pickle-flavored toothpaste, if that were to exist?" Beatrice informed her siblings, before washing out the taste with long sip of tea. 

Klaus sighed and opened a different book. "This would be so much easier, if we had Sunny's help".

"Maybe," agreed Violet. "But that would defeat half the point of this. Besides, this isn't cooking. It's chemistry." 

"You would be surprised by how similar those actually are" interjected Sunny, leaning in through the dining room door. 

"Sunny!" Violet, Klaus, and Beatrice chorused in alarm as they tried to hide the evidence of their culinary experimentation. 

"W-weren't you were spending the day with Annabelle next door?" Klaus asked, greatly flustered.

"We were going to, but she fell out of a tree and sprained her wrist. She's going to be fine, but she has to go to the hospital to get it checked out," Sunny explained, eyeing her sibling's set-up curiously. "What are you doing here? If...if I'm not supposed to know just yet, I can leave. I know my birthday is tomorrow..." she offered, realizing that she most likely interrupted something to do with her gift or party. 

Klaus looked at Violet, who in turn looked at Sunny and sighed. "Actually...would you mind lending us a hand here?" she asked sheepishly. "It _is_ actually for your birthday, but we've been absolutely stuck for far too long." 

"Of course!" Sunny answered, sitting down at the table with her family. "I don't mind helping, it's the thought that counts after all. What are you trying to do?".

"Well, remember a few weeks ago when you made those chocolate cookies?" Klaus asked, opening the book back up. "And you told us that the recipe called for crushed candy cane on top of the frosting?" 

"Yes, the peppermint would have complimented the frosting much better than the aniseed extract I added instead. Regular mint would have been too overpowering. But, we're all allergic to peppermint, except Beatrice of course..."

"Which is why Klaus and I decided that we would try to creat a peppermint substitute that we weren't allergic to, for your birthday present. We were going to surprise you, by making peppermint ice cream with it."

"And I volunteered to taste-test, since I'm not allergic so I can compare! But so far everything has come out tasting awful!" 

"You're all smart, I'm sure it isn't that bad." Sunny offered. Beatrice in turn handed her their most recent concoction. 

"...Why does it taste like..." Sunny smacked her lips a bit. "...Minty pickles?"

"I don't know!" Violet cried, equal parts exasperated and realizing the comedy of their situation. 

Sunny hummed thoughtfully as she looked over her sibling's notes. As soon as she felt familiar with what had already been attempted and accomplished, the four began to work together, pooling their respective skills and conversing as they enjoyed the process of working together. 

"I think...yes! I think we've got it!" Sunny cried triumphantly, handing the mixture to 'Head Taste-Tester Beatrice Snicket Baudelaire' as the 9-year-old's construction paper placard read. She took a small taste, and smiled brightly. "This tastes _just_ like peppermint!" she informed. 

"And, we're _sure_ it won't set off a reaction?" Violet asked, looking over Klaus's notes on how their allergy worked. 

"I'm...mostly sure? In theory it won't, but there's no way to know until we try it". 

Violet picked up the cup of liquid and swirled it around before shrugging. "We have baking soda in the cupboard?" she confirmed. When Klaus and Sunny both nodded, she poured a bit onto a spoon, swallowed it, and passed it along to Klaus, who followed suit then passed it to Sunny. They waited patiently, and when 10 minutes of conversation had passed without so much as an itch, they all felt assured that their experiment was a success.

"Well, happy birthday Sunny. It's a day early and you had to help make your own gift, but I hope you still enjoy it."

Sunny stood up and hugged her older sister. "Violet, of course I'll enjoy it! You worked so hard to try and make something special for me, I could appreciate the sentiment even if you couldn't make it work." 

Klaus poured the synthetic peppermint flavor into a cleaned out vanilla extract bottle, which he then stuck a blank white label onto, and wrote "Hypoallergenic Artificial Peppermint Flavor".

"Happy birthday Sunny" he said as he handed the bottle to his sister. "After you put that away, why don't you go play with Ink? We've got some peppermint ice cream to make, and we can't let you do _everything_ for your birthday, even if you are better suited for it." 

"Thank you all so much!" she answered, hugging her brother and then her younger sister before she put away her gift. All the new culinary avenues that were now open to her without her family allergy in the way had her excited, and she couldn't decide what to cook with it first. Deciding this was a good question to ponder among cookbooks in the company of a giant snake, Sunny followed her brother's suggestion to find Ink, before heading to the library to learn how to make peppermint candies.


End file.
